Till death do us part
by Sublimestyle21
Summary: A possible sequel to "The one you love" by Orokid. Contains a conflict of Valeshipping and Flameshipping and a hint of Lighthouseshipping.
1. Chapter 1

This is a possible continuation of Orokid's "The one you love" and thus strongly recommend you read that first. This is my first fanfic (I would like to thank Orokid for that) and any comments are appreciated. I hope you enjoy it as much as I did (Chapter two is in the oven :D)

Why was life so cruel?

He wondered every time his thoughts happened to drift by his ex-wife and former friend. He felt he had no place in the very world he helped save. All the struggles, all the battles he had been through, the whole world even, held no meaning if he had to exist in it without her by his side. Why did they have to snuff out even the tiniest bit of light in his otherwise bitter and turbulent life. Just when he thought the pain was over, just when he thought he built something with his own hands, a place he felt he belonged, it all came crumbling down like a house of cards...

**"Never build castles on sand" she said**

**"Don't let the wind blow your mind" she said**

**"Love is like fire and deep as the sea"**

**Nobody told me that it would hurt me...**

"What the HELL do you mean they eloped?" Felix asked while an absolutely horrified Sheba put both hands on her mouth as if to prevent a demon from coming out. Felix's stern expression had transformed to a mixture of surprise and anger. As everyone knew, he loved his sister above everything, perhaps even Sheba, thus was easy to fathom why he was utterly furious at her for her recklessness.

"I never thought she would go that far."

Sheba's voice revealed more guilt than sympathy and that is what caused Isaac to glare at her before saying his piece...

"I highly doubt that... as it is you she confided with all her troubles on the matter..."

Sheba was stunned. Could it be that the Venus Adept had overheard them that night? As words eluded her she tried to peer into his mind despite having promised not to.

"Don't even try that on me!" he said. Having experienced Ivan's Mind Read it was a piece of cake for him to notice Sheba's psyenergetic aura.

His eyes were cold, so unusually cold. How could the gentle-hearted Isaac they all knew become like that in just over a month. More importantly why didn't anyone notice? Was everyone too busy to help him, to understand him, to comfort him? Was really fate so cruel to repay kindness with betrayal? The realization hurt her more than anything. The poor thing didn't deserve to be played with like that.

"I'm sorry...but...I...I didn't..."

"Is that true Sheba?" Felix's rage had reached it's peak. He wasn't particularly fond of Jenna being married to Isaac, despite him being a childhood friend and not to mention, a kind young man, a hero and the only one worthy to be called a rival. But to elope? To abandon everything, her husband, him and their parents, whom until recently thought dead... all for what? Garret? Her escaping with that buffoon made it all the more painful.

"Yes..." The blonde girl replied. "Jenna and I discussed a lot about this..."

"And you all played this charade behind my back... "

"We...I...didn't want to lie like this to you...but.."

"I know...Jenna is like a sister to you." His words, devoid of emotion as they were, made Sheba wish he blamed her. After all...she was, at least partly, responsible.

"What are you going to do?. Because, If all you want to do is sitting here hopeless, I will bring my sister and that bastard back...dead or alive."

"You needn't do a thing Felix. I'll go after them..." Isaac's eyes kept staring at the void while he addressed Sheba.

"Do you know where they went?"

Sheba hesitated for a moment, then decided to be fair with him...for once...

"Imil...they said that they would go and hide there while they decided what to do."

"Then there is no time...we have to start packing. They are at least a week ahead." Said Felix already holding the doorknob.

"There is plenty of time and I will go alone..." Isaac had gotten up and the shape he was in was to be pitied. He had lost a lot of weight and he barely had the strength to walk. His hands were shaking, probably from the large amounts of liquor he gulped down every night at the tavern. His bloodshot eyes gave away the sleepless days and nights of the last weeks and Sheba thought that she saw some gray hair among his dim-colored blonde hair.

"You are in no shape to travel!" The Jupiter adept said fearfully.

Isaac paid no mind as he put tremendous effort in climbing the stairs to his...and once...Jenna's room. Felix and Sheba followed him, firstly to make sure that he didn't trip and hurt himself, but also due to curiosity.

He entered the room and let out a pained sigh as his gaze fell on the bed which he and his wife shared. He walked to his side and knelt on the floor while knocking on some seemingly loose boards. He lifted a couple of them to unveil his treasure. His Sol Blade, a wedding gift from Felix still shining like it was used yesterday, the Teleport Lapis, given to him by Ivan and a small bottle filled with Hermes's Water from Mercury Lighthouse. Without a second thought he opened the bottle and gulped down the healing water. Immediately the effect took place, gradually restoring his strained body. He opened the closet where he kept his clothes and armor.

"If I'm going to get changed I need to be left alone" The blonde man said without ever looking at the confused couple at the doorstep which then decided that it would be harmless for him to be left alone and went down to the kitchen.

He undressed tossing his liquor stained clothes on the bed not caring about the mess. It's understandable, he had more important things to worry about. As he stood naked, he gazed at his reflection in the mirror. He was only 22 but he had the battle-scarred body of a seasoned warrior..."All for her" he thought. That's right! He had started the whole quest mostly out of his desire to save her...the salvation Weyard was merely a coincidence. No matter! It was all in the past now and he had to pull the curtains, finally bringing an end in this farce of a life. He firstly put on a clean pair of pants and slipped on his Mythril shirt. He wore his Hyper boots and picked up his Valkyrie armor, grazed by the claws of a certain three headed dragon. While tying his armor he thought how odd it felt to be preparing like this when he had almost forgotten the warrior within him. For the first time in what seemed to him like ages he felt strong and confident. It was a welcomed change as he would need every ounce of courage to perform what he had in mind. He was almost done...he put on his Mythril helm and slipped on his riot gloves. After he tied the Sol blade's scabbard on his belt and wore his yellow scarf he grabbed the teleport lapis and went down.

Sheba and Felix's jaws dropped in awe as they found hard to believe their own eyes. Before them stood not the Isaac they left behind changing, but an Isaac they had years to see. Yes, this was the Isaac that stood at the top of Mars Lighthouse, the Isaac who defied the wise one, the one ready to sacrifice everything for Weyard, the one who helped save the world.

"Long time no see." Said Felix still not believing his eyes. But his joy was short-lived for when the Hero of Vale removed his helm he was the same broken man Jenna had left behind.

"Yes...I...suppose." Said the blonde man as he turned to the door. "Soon… everything will be as they should be..."

"What do you mean?" Sheba began to worry and for a good reason for she felt this would be the last she saw of him.

"I'm going now…"

"To Imil?" Asked Felix

"No...at least not right away..."

Felix looked puzzled

"I'm heading to the ruins of Sol Sanctum. My last journey began there, it's only fitting that this one does too." he said and opened the door. Just for a moment he turned around, with a mockery of a smile on his lips. "Goodbye" was the last word they heard from him.

"Goodbye...not farewell...not see you...nor I'll be back...but goodbye." Sheba felt a knot in her throat while her vision became blurry...He was leaving for good...but what was he thinking. What in Sol's name was he planning to do?

"Felix I'm scared..." she whimpered as tears run down her cheeks.

"It will be alright." he said while wrapping his arms around her in a soft tender embrace... "He won't do anything foolish...He'd better be."

**Together with me you grew up my love**

**Together we gazed at the stars above**

**Someday you fled to uncharted seas**

**You and my friend brought me down on my knees**

**down on my knees**

**down on my knees**

The blonde Venus Adept dragged his steps to the place of all origins, the Sol Sanctum. The chamber that once housed the key to the greatest power in Weyard, which in time, partly, became his own, lay now in ruins along with the rest of Old Vale. That was the place where he grew up, the place where he met her, the place where he lost her for the first time...Memories began to wash over him like a wave, memories soaked within the land itself. He remembered how they played together with Felix and...Garet. He still couldn't bring himself to despise the red-haired Mars Adept he was, after all, like a brother to him. Why would he do that? Did he love her that bad to stab his best friend in the back? He had both his parents, his siblings, Kay and Aaron, he was the grandson of the mayor, always to be kept safe and happy...but nothing was enough for him now, was it? No! He had to snatch Jenna away from him as well...He sighed for he knew that Jenna wasn't "taken" from him and he wasn't going to lie to himself about that. She left him on her own volition..."I love you too" she said to him. What about her? What did he ever do to her, to receive that kind of treatment? They both left, without a word...like thieves, they disappeared into the night. He felt what's left of his broken heart tearing apart even worse than before, but he cherished the pain...as long as he ached, he remained sane. He kept his wits about him this way and it was addictive. As his thoughts cleared more, he began to realize that he would never be the same. He could neither trust nor care for others like he used to...But that was in the past...soon answers would be given...that, or these questions would not matter anymore. By Sol, he was going to put an end to this. He closed his eyes as he held the Teleport Lapis and brought the image of Imil in his mind before he whispered [Teleport] and said goodbye to Vale.

**"Never build castles on sand" she said**

**"Don't let the wind blow your mind" she said**

**"Love is like fire and deep as the sea"**

**Somebody told me that it would hurt me...**

By the fireplace, sat the two Mars Adepts and Mia...The atmosphere was heavy, even heavier than the cold air whistling outside. Finally Mia broke the crystal silence.

"How could you? How could you both? To poor Isaac, and to leave with not so much of a well deserved explanation!"

Mia couldn't leave them out in the cold but was disgusted after hearing what had happened. It was rare for Mia to get angry but when she did...Sol forbid if you were the cause of it. Was is even possible for Isaac to have such a star crossed fate? Being betrayed by the wife and friend he loved the most? Jenna and Garet hung their heads in shame as befitted two adulterers. Mia would have kept letting them have it, before sending them straight back to New Vale, but a knock on the door cut her off at that.

Jenna and Garet's heart's skipped a beat...Could it be?

Isaac reached Imil late an night. His muscles had forgotten how cold it can get in the northern part of the continent, even in spring. He was finally there and he would act like a man to the end. Snow crunched under his boots and he could feel like he would collapse any moment now...NOT YET...his heart, his soul, his mind, his whole being shouted at him NOT TO GIVE UP. Not until he sees their faces. One more step, two...three.. he was finally standing in front of Imil Sanctum's door, ready to perform the hardest thing he had to do in his entire life. He took one deep breath and knocked...

Mia was ready to open the door when Jenna let out cry.

"Don't Mia. Don't open the door"

"Why? What are you afraid of?" the Mercury Adept found Jenna's paranoia quite irritating. "This is a sanctum and I am a healer. That could be an injured or sick person in need of help." she continued her scolding even as she got up and walked to the door..."You know, you are welcomed here (grabs the doorknob) but this is no time... (the door slid open slowly)... for childi... (door fully open)

Mia cut off her sentence and let out a gasp of sheer terror, firstly because the blonde man standing at her doorstep was none other than Isaac, but mostly because, dear Sol, the one who stood before her was a mere shadow of what he used to be. By Mercury, what had happened to him? The young man was fully clad in armor, the very same he wore during their last stand against the Doom Dragon. He stood proud and dignified as they all remembered...but his face...his face revealed the toll his wife's actions had taken on him. His deep blue eyes had been reduced to a pale shade of cyan, his cheeks had been sucked in, giving away the loss of weight the armor hid. His skin was ashen and gray hair appeared here and there among his once bright blonde hair. Garet was speechless as to how the man before them still stood, even bearing the extra weight of his armor... It seemed to him as if Isaac were a dead king ready to be buried with his weapons, as befitted a true warrior and though Isaac definitely wasn't a king, he was a warrior with no equal. Jenna was on the brink of tears seeing what misery her selfishness had brought to the man who loved her that much. Mia stood in awe noticing how calm Isaac seemed...at least, given the circumstances.

"Good evening Mia, It's been a long time." Isaac greeted her with a calm, gentle voice

"Hello Isaac it is...nice...to see you." she replied, still shivering in shock

"I see Jenna and Garet are here...May I...come in?"

Mia felt the sorrow in his voice, as he struggled to maintain his tone and keep his emotions at bay.

"Yes come in" She smiled while raised her hands to his right arm, helping him in.

"Pardon me!" He said. "...but your pity is not needed and is most offensive"

Had they heard right? Had Isaac spoken to Mia like that?. The cerulean haired girl was taken by surprise. Isaac had never talked to her like that...In fact he'd NEVER talked to ANYONE like that...

Turning to the Mars Adepts, Isaac continued... "I came here to tie the loose ends."

Jenna started to fear for her and Garet's life...no, that wasn't Isaac talking...It couldn't be...could it?

The blonde man then noticed Jenna's wedding ring...not on her finger but hung on a chain around her heck.

[Catch]

The next moment the wedding ring was on his right hand. Then he removed his, placing them both on his left hand. They were a pair of matching golden rings, his was engraved with flaming patterns and her wife's, adorned with vines. He weighted them in his palms and frowned at the weight of the bond they stood for, as well as the memories they carried. He took them on his right palm and the strangest thing happened. The metal began to change...from gold to silver...silver to bronze...and then from bronze to lead. He threw them both in the fireplace, watching them melt with a pained expression on his face, as if a part of him had been swallowed by the flames.

"Was... that... alchemy?" Mia saw it but couldn't believe her eyes...How could Isaac?,,, And then she remembered how a piece of the Golden Sun was sealed inside him by the Wise One after the lighting of Mars Lighthouse...but when did he?...

Her thoughts were distracted by the Venus Adept's voice, loud, clear and formal.

"With this, as of this day forward, I renounce my vows... you are no longer bound to me nor I to you."

Jenna felt as though she was stabbed in the heart by a hundred knives...Isaac, had just divorced her and in the most shameful of ways...

Garet awaited, as is was his turn to take the hit...He had divorced Jenna, but how was he going to break ties with him?

"Garet, I once thought of you as a brother thus I gave you my sword, the Gaia Blade, a token of our bond. I'm here to reclaim it, along with any intention of friendship towards you."

It was the red-haired man's turn to feel the cold rejection in Isaac's words...But he deserved it and he was going to take it like a man.

Garet reached to his left, picked up the sword that leaned against the wall and passed it to Isaac. The blonde man unsheathed the blade and held it as he would a child. Then, he dropped the sword on the floor with a disgusted expression, written on his face. It was, as if his friend's betrayal had tainted the sword, which had saved his life so many times, beyond repair. He then drew his sword and hammered it down on the other, shattering it to small pieces.

"As of this day, you are a stranger to me, Garet. We have no obligation to each other, all bonds broken, all debts repaid."

Garet couldn't help but give in to tears, just as Mia and Jenna had already done.

"My job here, is done. I will leave now, for I feel I've overstayed my welcome." He said while averting his eyes, but Jenna saw the wet marks on the wooden floor.

"Where are you going?" The fiery red-haired girl, struggled to finish the sentence between sobs...

But Isaac was ever-unyielding...

"I'm afraid, my love, this is none of your concern anymore." and he opened the door.

The cold wind barging in made their tears all the more unbearable. As he walked outside he felt it wouldn't be fair to leave her in the dark as she had done, so with his usual calm and gentle voice, he explained..."I have fulfilled my duty to the Wise One, I have taken my weight off of you, and "him"... so now...(he sighed)... I can finally return...where I belong."

Jenna sighed out of relief...that man was the Isaac she knew and loved.

"Are you going home?"

His answer shattered her heart, just as she had shattered his...

"No I'm not planing to return home...I've already said my goodbyes to Vale"

"Goodbyes?" Her eyes widened. "What do you…"

"This is the last you will be seeing me...this is...my final act of petty revenge" Tears running through his bloodshot eyes.

"No, you are not going to do anything like that, you just want to scare me...to pay me back" She was at her wits' end...

"Think what you will... It makes little difference to me." His voice as cold as the Imilian wind the moment he walked out, turned around and unsheathed his blade.

"Isaac! DON'T!" Mia screamed while running outside.

Don't do it man!" Garet, still crying like a child, sounded more like begging that asking.

Jenna, decided that she would have the last say in this. "Isaac! Put the sword down." She was screaming with all her heart while the pointed a dagger at her own throat. For a moment, she reminded him the stubborn red-haired tomboy he fell in love with... but she continued... "If you take your life now, you will be responsible for two more deaths."

Two more deaths! It was Isaac's turn to snap...

"You...you...you WHORE. You bear HIS child? For how long? Ever since we were still married? Why? What did I do to deserve your spite? Do you want me alive just to torment me? Do you hate me that much? ANSWER ME, YOU CURSED WOMAN!

"BECAUSE IT IS YOURS! You self-righteous BASTARD. When I realized I was pregnant with your child I felt happy because I realized I loved you...more than I've ever loved another man. Garret and I knew that we made a mistake...I thought, you would forgive us...that you would forgive...me... but he knew you better than I did. He knew you would think the child is his and that's why, out of fear of your reaction, he took me and ran...

"You almost had me there...But do you honestly think that I would believe any more of your LIES? Isaac was maddened with sorrow, anger and confusion. His voice swelled with bile and bitterness... "How do I know it is not his, after all the times you shared his bed with him...HUH?

"Because we never slept together man" Garet was trying to explain in between sobs and coughs "She and I never got that far...because...because of you. Please, don't do it. It's my fault...I pushed her...she loved you, Isaac…she still does! Don't punish her for my mistake...don't punish yourself...You renounced us but we still love you...Jenna loves her husband and I love my brother"

"You have some nerve to call me that after what you've done, especially, when I heard her say she loved you too...from her own lips at that...But I admit that you were right in one thing, Garet..." Along with his tone, Isaac, lowered his sword, causing the Mars Adept to let out a sigh of relief...but in vain, as he placed the point of his sword on his chest.

"…I don't believe you at all!" He then turned to Jenna. "I'll keep my end of the bargain...till death do us part my love."

Jenna screamed. "ISAAC, NOOOOOOO!" but it was too late as Isaac had driven the blade through his heart, all the way to the hilt.

**"Never build castles on sand" she said**

**"Don't let the wind blow your mind" she said**

**"Love is like fire and deep as the sea"**

**Mother you told me that it would hurt me...**

Mia couldn't help but stand there mortified and helpless as Isaac lay on his side, still impaled upon his own sword, painting the snow around him crimson, with his own blood.

"Isaac..." She muttered.

Jenna had given in fully to her grief and fell on her knees beside him. She drove the sword out of him, hands trembling, and tossed it aside. She was still screaming and crying while she placed Isaac on his back, while gently holding his head with one hand and trying to stop the bleeding with the other...vainly...

"NOOOO! ISAAC, DON'T DIE...PLEASE DON'T DIE…don't leave me alone...I LOVE YOU ISAAC! PLEASE, DON'T DIE!..." she screamed at the top of her lungs, but the deed was done...

Isaac gathered whatever little strength remained in him to lift his hand and place it oh her cheek, while he whispered, his final words...

"I will always... love...you...Jenna." he said and drew his last breath...

Jenna lost her grip on reality, her heart, her mind, her soul, her eyes all emptied at the same time...she was alone...at the dawn of their lives together, her Golden Sun had set...

**Together with me you grew up my love**

**Together we gazed at the stars above**

**Someday you fled to uncharted seas**

**You and my friend brought me down on my knees**

**down on my knees**

**down on my knees**


	2. Chapter 2

**Heavens mourn with me, one life is lost.**

**Fate is now satisfied but at what cost?**

**Our Golden Sun has set to unknown lands**

**He chose to seal his fate with his own hands.**

Somewhere in Lord Hammet's palace in Kalay, a certain blond boy kept tossing and turning in his bed. He eventually woke up, drenched in sweat and his heart still racing. Dreams kept tormenting him...Dreams? Visions? His powers hadn't matured fully at that time but uncertainty didn't put him at ease. In fact, it made his fears even worse. He remembered clearly what he saw...Isaac...lying on the snow... in Imil... he was...wounded, badly, something...stuck out of his back...a blade. Dear Jupiter...he was run-through by a sword...The sword was...he felt his head was going to burst but he had to remember...the Sol Blade...but...why?...

"ISAAC NOOOOOOO!"... Jenna's scream echoed in Ivan's mind "NOOOO! ISAAC DON'T DIE...PLEASE DON'T DIE…don't leave me alone...I LOVE YOU ISAAC! PLEASE, DON'T DIE!...".

He had taken his own life...the answer landed on him, like a slap across the face. Jenna ran away with Garet...to...to...Imil...Suddenly, everything had cleared up. Jenna had an affair with Garet...Isaac followed them to Imil...he...divorced Jenna...he ended his friendship with Garet and then...he...and then he...took his own life in front of their eyes.

"No...no...no this can't be..." Tears gushed from Ivan's eyes, but his powers tapped into his memories, revealing more... Isaac, as he was when he first met him in Vault, shy, serious but brimming with life. His yellow scarf dancing in the wind, the same wind that stroke his golden hair. He saw Isaac at the top of Mars Lighthouse, proud, gallant, seemingly invincible as he charged the Doom Dragon. But the next vision was a mockery of the previous two...What Ivan saw was a man, broken, tormented, aged in both body and soul. And then, he saw that man dead. Jenna mourned over him while Mia and Garet stood petrified. He saw the end of his friend and companion, in shocking detail. He felt everything breaking inside him when he heard his last words...

"I will always... love...you...Jenna"...

Ivan couldn't help but collapse on the floor, weeping and mourning...

Mia snapped out of her trance to rush to Jenna's side. She still couldn't believe what she had just witnessed.

Jenna, still down on her knees, still crying while holding Isaac's lifeless body close to her, kept rocking back and forth like she was hypnotized.

**Heavens mourn with me, one life is lost.**

**Fate is now satisfied but at what cost?**

**A girl is responsible, she broke his heart**

**and all of her dreams with him just fell apart.**

"Jenna..." The kind healer knelt next to the broken girl and wrapped an arm around her shoulders, genuinely trying to ease the poor girl's suffering.

"It's my fault...I...I did...that...to him" Jenna's voice distant, cold and hollow as it was, sent chills down Mia's spine.

"Don't say such things...As much as it pains me to say it...It was his choice!" The mercury adept felt bitter towards Isaac. He had been betrayed, but did he have to give up on his own life? Did he have to punish Jenna and Garet so much? She was torn...and...confused. Did Isaac really want to burden them with guilt? Was it... an escape he desired? Or did he simply take out his frustrations on himself in the end? The questions were many, but none of them would ever be answered properly. The truth would be… forever hidden, for Isaac had taken the answers with him to the grave.

Garet remained silent, completely taken over by the heavy shackles of guilt. His selfishness had hurt so many of his loved ones. One of them lay dead before him, with his body soaked in blood and tears. Before he knew what he was doing, he walked to the place Jenna threw the Sol Blade at. He picked it up and slowly walked to his friend's side.

"Jenna please...let him rest." Mia saw the tall Mars Adept coming towards them with Isaac's sword in hand. For one moment, fear struck her heart, fear that he planned to follow his best friend to the afterlife. Fortunately, that was not the case. Jenna kissed her loved one's cold lips one last time and, with Mia's help, got up. Garet placed the sword on Isaac's chest and his hands on the hilt. He then searched the blond man's pockets.

What it took was mere seconds for the young man to find what he was looking for… the Teleport Lapis. Clutching the stone in his hand, feeling some uneasiness for his act, he said: "We have to go back...to New Vale. We have to bring Isaac back...to everyone. His parents have a right to know...they have to...we all have to...say our goodbyes properly." Garet seemed more serious than he had ever been. His -once near-permanent- smile had melted into a pained expression that barely described the storm of emotions raging inside him. He placed one hand under his dead friend's shoulders, the other under his knees and picked him up, gently, like a father would his sickly son. Tears wet his eyes anew, when he noticed how light the lifeless body felt in his hands. Isaac wasn't the strongest man on Weyard but everything he lacked in muscle, he made up for with his heart. And they drove him to tear it asunder with his own hands...

"I understand what you want to do..." Mia said, having regained her composure. "...but...what will happen to you two?" She directed the question mostly to Jenna. "In case news have gotten out, people will be swarming around you...cursing you or even trying to hurt you." The young Mercury Adept's voice was filled with reason as well as fear. Even though her previous argument was solid enough, she continued nonetheless... "Some may even believe you purposely murdered Isaac...If this happens you will both be exiled, imprisoned or even, Sol forbid, executed!"

"It's a risk we have to take..." Jenna stated, while her gaze was chained to the snow-covered ground.

Next door to Ivan's room, Piers slept soundly. The Lemurian found himself in Kalay on his way to New Vale. Upon hearing of his arrival and, moreover, the destination of the journey, Ivan insisted on going along. After being informed of who the Mercury Adept was, the kind Lord Hammet requested that Piers spent the night in his palace, as a guest, before resuming his journey. The man woke up to Ivan's cries of pain. Without a second thought, he got up and rushed to the Jupiter Adept's room. Upon laying eyes to the weeping boy, he couldn't help but wonder about the reason.

"What is it my friend?" The Lemurian asked while kneeling next to the blond boy. His voice revealed genuine concern, as he was one of the few people he had the pleasure to call friends.

"It's...Isaac...He's...dead..." Ivan tried to explain in between sobs, while tears burned his eyes.

Piers gasped like he had taken a punch in the gut. At first he had attributed the boy's outburst to a mere nightmare but, upon remembering the boy's Jupiter alignment, everything fell into place. The lemurian scolded himself for not noticing sooner, while putting considerable effort into calming himself, for he knew, that a clear mind would serve them better.

"Calm down Ivan." He said after taking a deep breath."…and tell me what happened."

Once Ivan regained control of his bursting emotions, he recounted everything he had "seen" and "heard"... Jenna and Garet's betrayal, their escape to Imil, Isaac following them and finally, ending up dead by his own hand. Piers found it implausible, unreal even, but he had witnessed the powers Jupiter Adepts possessed first hand. After all, Sheba, whom he knew far more than the boy in front of him, possessed the very same powers. The thought made him curious about the female Jupiter Adept...Would it be possible for her to have seen the same things as Ivan? If that was the case then...

Ivan's voice disrupted the Lemurian's trail of thought...

"Piers... We have to go...Now!" Ivan had felt the premonition...A storm was coming, and all of them would be caught up in it.

"If it makes you feel better, I will inform Lord Hammet of our departure at once."

"No...there is no time...Besides, I can't bring myself to explain this to him...especially when there is no need for me to burden him with this."

Piers disagreed. He had been told once, that Lord Hammet had been like a father to the boy, thus, It would be unfair to hide such matters from him. However, time was indeed of the essence, so he nodded in understanding, and the two of them made their way to the stables.

Back in New Vale, on a couch in Isaac's living room, sat Sheba and Felix. Sheba had fallen asleep on Felix's lap but, during that night, it seemed that the Sandman bore no love for the Venus Adept, as he was wide awake and tormented by anxiety. So many things changed around him in one single night. During his journeys, he saw clearly how his sister felt about his rival. She went as far as to prevent them from meeting each other, out of fear of a possible conflict. Even before that, back when they were just kids, he was envious of the bond those two shared...and Garet...Felix never liked that loud and reckless guy...but he was a true companion and always there for everyone. He and Isaac were truly like brothers, always side by side in battle as well as in life. What in Venus's name had happened to change that? He was furious at both his sister and Garet... Regardless of loving each other or not, they should have told everyone...That, indeed, seemed like the right thing to do...but…it would only serve appearances. The truth was that poor Isaac's heart couldn't be spared the pain. He could relate to his fellow Venus Adept, mostly because of the girl resting on his lap. He knew he couldn't bear loosing her and he would even risk his own life for her. In fact he already had, back, at the Venus Lighthouse. A faint and rare smile crept onto his lips whenever he thought of Sheba but it soon crumbled as he noticed the expression on the Jupiter Adept's face.

She looked as if she was in pain and, even thought her eyes were closed, he could see trails of tears on her pale cheeks. What kind of dream {nightmare} could have bothered {tortured} her so much? His mind kept running in circles when the evident answer struck him like a blade. Dreams and nightmares didn't matter much to ordinary people. But Adepts...no...Jupiter Adepts were definitely an exception. How could he have not seen it sooner? ...Sheba was having a vision...and a bad one at that. An ominous feeling washed over the Venus adept but a knock on the door pulled him violently back to reality.

Ivan and Piers pushed their horses to their limits to get to New Vale in time. Ivan could hear his heart pounding, echoing louder than the sound of their horses' hooves. As they passed through Vault, Piers was the first to break the silence.

"New Vale is still half an hour ahead."

"We have to go faster." Ivan, riding like the wind, kept praying to whatever god or deity would hear him at the time... "Please let me be wrong...let this be a lie...please...LET ME BE WRONG!"

Garet, Jenna and Mia arrived in New Vale after what seemed like ages. Garet carried Isaac's dead body and Jenna clung to Mia's left arm as they all walked towards the house Jenna and Isaac, once, called home. Their faces looked grim, reflecting the tragedy that had unfolded before their very eyes not two hours ago. As they stood a few feet from the door, Mia noticed light coming out of the window.

"It seems someone is inside." She said somewhat confused.

"Who could it be?" Garet's voice trembled, giving away his amazement. He had decided to face the consequences of his actions but he wasn't ready to do so...so soon.

"It could be Isaac's parents... or my brother... it doesn't matter. Let's go inside." Jenna said mindlessly, always staring at the void.

Mia, reluctantly left Jenna's side and went ahead to knock the door. She hesitated for a moment but the point of safe return was way behind them...so she lifted her right hand and softly banged her knuckles on the wooden surface.

Sheba woke when Felix tried to get up. She was still sleepy but the effect of her nightmares quickly jabbed her mind into action.

"Felix...wait...Isaac..." Sheba was stuttering out of pure shock but the Venus Adept shook his head.

"Just a moment Sheba. Someone's at the door." He said as he walked out of the living room and into the main hall. Sheba stood still. She already knew who it was, as well as the purpose of their visit. She hugged her knees as her eyes began to burn... "Why did I tell him?... It's all my fault..."

Felix, answering the ever more persistent knocks, opened the door. He was amazed to see the Imilian healer's face...Mia, was her name... When she stepped aside his astonished expression was replaced by one of sheer terror...terror and disbelief. Garet was holding Isaac in his arms and Jenna stood further back in silence. What caught his undivided attention was the shape of the blond man's body. His skin had taken a pale gray color and he was soaked in blood There was a grievous looking wound on his chest, directly overlapping his heart. His sword, the Sol Blade, placed on top of him, was stained by a deep crimson. _What kind of joke is this?_ He thought to himself. _It's a joke!…right?_ The brown-haired Adept lost his balance and grabbed the door frame for support. His vision blurred and all he could make out was the frames of the people in front of him. Voices echoed in the distance but all he could hear was a loud ring piercing his eardrums.

The shock Felix had taken at that time couldn't, even barely, described with words. Millions of thoughts raced through his mind, millions of questions he wanted to ask and millions of curses to scream but alas, the words were too fast for his tongue to grasp. What he finally managed to say was: "What the hell happened? Is he… dead?"

"Yes…He did this to himself…" Said Garet, never daring to even look at Felix in the eye. "…but, in some way, it was us who put the sword in his hand."

It took what seemed like ages for the brown-haired Adept to regain his composure, and mere seconds for his astonishment to turn to pure wrath…The man who was responsible for turning his sister into an adulterer and ruining her marriage, her happiness, was right in front of him. And he was SHAMELESSLY saying those things while carrying the dead body of the man he betrayed HIMSELF. He wanted to let the shameless moron have it, however, he did not… It would be an insult to Isaac's memory if he lost it now…he had to wait.

"This is no place for talk…come inside." Felix was having the hardest time of his life trying to suppress his anger and spoke while gnashing his teeth painfully.

Everyone waited in the living room while Garet went upstairs to put Isaac on his deathbed. When he finally got down he felt the heavy silence. Trying to get some comfort he let his eyes follow Jenna. Felix, who until then barely kept himself in line, finally snapped when he caught Garet glancing at Jenna. He grabbed the tall Mars Adept by the neck with one hand and started punching him mercilessly while screaming like a maniac.

"HOW DARE YOU? How dare you drag my sister in your stupidity? Has everything turned out the way you wanted? My sister finally cast her eyes down to you and the opposition is dead! Are you satisfied? ANSWER ME! What's wrong? Cat's got your tongue? By Sol, I knew you weren't the smartest guy in Vale but I would have never guessed that you were such a complete MORON."

The brown-haired Adept would have kept lashing out on Garet if left alone but, eventually, Mia, Sheba and Jenna managed to quell the Venus Adept's wrath for the time being. It took the combined effort of all three girls to calm and contain him, but the whole incident snapped Jenna out of her trance. She turned to her brother and berated him for his outburst.

"Don't try to pretend that I'm completely innocent… because I'm not! In fact, I'm just as guilty as Garet in …" Jenna tried to explain further but Felix had more to say.

"Are you trying to defend him? Why? Do you want to share his fate? Do you even love him? I feel that I don't know my own sister anymore. Do you understand…Jenna? I don't fucking recognize you anymore…but…you are right about one thing sis…"

Felix was going to regret his words for the rest of his life, but too much had been bottled up inside him…and all barriers crumbled to dust…

"…It is your fault…ALL OF IT! No one forced you to marry Isaac. It was YOU who said that you loved him…It was YOU who told me that you wouldn't forgive me or ANYONE trying to get between you two… and of course…it was YOU who betrayed him as well! Isaac was aware of Garet's feelings and he could live with that…What he couldn't live with…was you…returning another man's affections! What he couldn't live with, was YOU having an affair with his best friend, Jenna!"

Mia stood speechless as Sheba tried to stop Felix from saying any more but he would not be stopped.

"In the end…It was YOU who killed him…not Garet. Isaac died because you failed to support your choice…all because of your god-damned half-assed feelings."

Those were the harshest words Felix had ever spoken…and the fact that he had directed them to the person he valued most, made Jenna fall on her knees. Her eyes emptied at once as she vaguely gazed up at her brother's eyes. That mortified look softened the brown-haired Adept's heart and dulled his reflexes as he failed to notice Mia's palm landing on his cheek.

"That's enough! Don't you think she's been through enough today? Don't you even care about the child in her womb? Mia gasped and put her hand over her mouth as soon as she finished her sentence.

"Child? What child? Is Jenna…." His eyes widened as he immediately glared at Garet who had just regained consciousness from his earlier beating. Mia noticed that and answered Felix's question before it was uttered.

"Isaac was the father."

"God's Blood! Did… Isaac… know?" Felix sounded exhausted and his voice barely above a whisper. He sighed.

"Jenna told him, when she saw that he was…going to kill himself…" The voice belonged to Garet. He was still on his back and now buried his face in his palms… "…she thought that it would stop him…but…he didn't believe any of us…"

"Just when I thought it can't get any worse." Said the brown-haired Adept.

"Felix." Sheba whimpered "It can… and it will…". Her words were true. Perhaps truer that she would have ever guessed as mere seconds after spoken, a gust of wind broke the door open and a panicked Ivan came rushing in, followed by Piers.

Ivan stood at the doorstep, staring at everyone's shocked expressions, looking for answers.

"Please excuse me for barging in like that…but…" Ivan was still panting, as if he had come from Kalay by foot. His eyes searched the room as if looking for something…someone rather. However, hope as he might, he didn't see his friend among the people standing in the room. He ignored how suspicious Isaac's lack of presence was and asked…

"…where is…Isaac?"

The only response he got was coming from Felix who slowly shook his head before saying:

"He…is gone"

Ivan felt the floor under his feet giving away. "No! It can't be! You're kidding?…right?…Please…" Poor Ivan's eyes jumped from face to face in hopes of someone telling him that it was all a lie…"This can't be…Isaac…DAMN!" The Jupiter Adept started punching the doorframe until red marks stained the wood with each hit. He cried with eyes shut as if trying to stop the tears.

Garet got up and went to Ivan's side. He truly wanted to console his friend but as soon as he tried to place his hand on Ivan's shoulder, the boy turned violently to him and stabbed him with his eyes.

"Don't you dare touch me!…" Ivan hissed. "I know everything. I just hoped… it was all a lie."

"Ivan…please calm down…" Piers who stood silent until then, placed his hands on Ivan's shoulders.

"SHUT UP!" Ivan's outburst was so sudden, that the Lemurian backtracked instantly. "This is…this is…damn." His lavender eyes filled with tears of anger and he tightened his fists so hard that blood started dripping from his palms.

"Ivan…I'm sorry…" Jenna made an attempt to convey her feelings of regret, but to no avail.

"YES! YOU SHOULD BE SORRY…you should be sorry…and ashamed!" Ivan turned so he could address both Jenna and Garet and said: "I will never forgive you…either of you!" and then, turned his back at the group, making his leave.

"Ivan! Please, wait." Even the kind Imilian healer's voice wasn't enough to calm him now.

"Leave me the HELL alone…this makes me… sick!" The Jupiter adept emphasized the last word as his eyes met with Sheba's. "I want to be alone." The poor girl cowered in shame for she knew the tragedy she had triggered.

Piers attempted to reason with the blond boy but Felix stopped him.

"There's nothing you can say to him right now…Let him cool off on his own."

"We all need to rest." Mia in particular was eager to break this heavy atmosphere. The sight of all of her friends, bickering and spitting venom at each other, broke her heart…

And thus, with everyone agreeing and anxious to put this accursed day behind them, they made their way to their homes. Felix and Sheba took Piers in for the night while Garet made his way for his home. Mia offered to stay and keep company to Jenna but the later kindly declined so she headed to the inn. Ivan was the only one not caring for sleep and found himself roaming the streets of New Vale, trying to sort out his thoughts.

With everyone gone, Jenna was left alone with mixed feelings. On one hand, she wouldn't have any comfort from her friends or her brother. The later hurt her badly but still loved her. Mia had scolded her at first but she protected her, and so did Sheba. On the other hand though, she wouldn't have to face Ivan, who had ended up hating her with all his might. Fortunately, Piers seemed quite indifferent, which was comforting. At the very least he didn't hate her too. But Garet… he was so devastated, that he never said a word to her since they left Imil. She felt sorry for him. She couldn't be with him but still loved him as a friend.

She started reevaluating her relationship with everyone she knew, as she climbed the stairs to her…former bedroom. Everything felt so distant…distant but real. It was as if the pain and sorrow were given a tangible form. Pain sliced her like a knife and sorrow lay upon her like a multi-layered cloak, soaked in the rain of tears.

Lost in thought, she didn't realize where she was until her hand reached the doorknob. Still hesitant she turned it and entered. There was her husband, her first love, her best friend lying dead on their bed.

Their whole life together flashed before her eyes. Their childhood, traumatized by the loss of his father and her parents. Their teenage, filled with the awkwardness that, gently, hid the spark of their love. Their adulthood, with their marriage turning from a dream to a nightmare. She could still remember, how happy she felt after finding out that their parents were still alive. She felt even happier when he finally confessed his love to her, because she felt the same. Finally, her joy had exceeded all expectations, when he proposed to her in the presence of all of their friends. She remembered what he said to her during their first night, after they made love:

"_I indulged myself in your embrace once more, like a child. Drowning in your essence, I forgot how to breathe. My heart like an anchor dragged me deeper and deeper. My mind unable to stay afloat. As your kisses dulled my senses, only one thought remained...If I'm to die like this, so be it. I don't care because you 're with me. I don't care because I love you..."_

This was more than enough to break her once more. She cried and screamed and prayed with all her being. Begging and pleading, then cursing and damning.

"Please let him come back to me…I love him so much…I know I don't deserve him and I don't care if he's mine…I just want him to be alive…I want him to smile…I want him to be happy…I …want to…see his smile again…I want to… kiss him once more…so PLEASE HEAR ME…I don't care what happens to me…or my body or my soul….I …JUST WANT HIM BACK!

The poor girl started to lose herself but a strange light, filling the room, gave pause to her spreading madness. She covered her eyes to protect them, as a round figure descended from the light and a deep but gentle voice filled her mind.

"Do not despair young one, for not all hope is lost." The voice belonged to the Wise One, the eternal guardian of the elemental stars. "You can still bring him back and to be yours again.

But the path is harsh and the price is great."

Jenna didn't need to hear any more. If the Wise One was there telling her that there is hope she would hold on to that single chance, no matter how slim. Isaac had defied greater odds to find her. Whatever the damned price was, she would pay gladly. She fixed her eyes on the guardian and with a loud, clear and determined voice she said:

"I'll do anything!"


End file.
